The Unexpected Gift
by TigerLily888
Summary: Fettucine, fruit cake and oh yes, SSA Derek Morgan, what more could a girl want for Christmas? Written for the CCOAC Christmas gift fic exchange. For racegirl17.


**This is for racegirl17 who requested a Morgan and JJ fic. Her prompts were Silent Night, the Christmas pickle and fruit cake. This is my first ever Morgan/JJ fic, so I was really nervous writing it. But it turned out better than I expected :) And Emily and Hotch are together, sorry, I just couldn't help myself.  
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**racegirl17, I really hope you like this. A very early Merry Christmas!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters below and no infringement is intended.  
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><p>Morgan picked up his satchel from his desk and slung it over his shoulder. He was turning to leave when a light from one of the offices on the catwalk caught his eye. He walked up the stairs, stopping at the open door and looking in.<p>

JJ was sitting at her desk, one of the dozens of files on her desk open. Her head was tilted slightly to one side, her pale blonde hair falling in a golden curtain on the other side of her face. She looked tired, her mouth was tight with strain and her brow furrowed in an uncharacteristic frown. Morgan knew her breakup with Will had been difficult and that moving on was proving equally difficult. The pain of their break up was made harder by the fact that their shared custody of Henry forced her to see Will frequently, even though it had been six months since he had moved out. Morgan knew through Garcia that Will had recently started to see another woman, which was another thing that JJ had to deal with in addition to her increased duties at work and the overwhelming responsibilities of being a single mother.

"Hey, JJ."

She looked up, startled. "Morgan, you're still here?"

"I wanted to finish the Horowitz report before I left for the holidays. It's Christmas Eve, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be home with Henry?"

She shook her head, a shadow passing over her face. "Will's got him for Christmas. They've gone back to New Orleans to visit his relatives."

Morgan walked into the room and stood in front of her desk. "I'm sorry to hear that. Hey, listen, I'm about to go work out in the gym. Come spot me while I do some weights and then I'll cook you my famous garlic shrimp fettuccine for dinner."

JJ eyed him suspiciously. "_Famous_ garlic shrimp fettuccine? If it's so famous how come I haven't heard of it?"

"It's famous among the _ladies_, JJ, if you get my meaning." Morgan gave her a wink, gratified to see her roll her eyes in exasperation. At least some of the tension on her face had faded. "Even Rossi gave me a nod when he tasted it. It's really good."

She frowned. "You're not inviting me over out of pity, are you? Just so you know I'd already planned my own pity party for one. There was going to be a lot of fried chicken and rocky road ice cream on the menu." Her voice was dry.

He glanced outside. "It's cold and wet and miserable and since we both drew the short straw to work Christmas Eve, we at least deserve some companionship tonight. If you come over, I'll share some of my momma's incredible fruit cake with you." He grinned, knowing her weakness for sweet desserts.

She raised an eyebrow. "What? The fruitcake that's so precious you won't share it with the team?"

"Hey, I have to make this last till next Christmas, you know. Besides, Hotch and Prentiss are at a luxury ski resort in Colorado, probably going at it like rabbits, Rossi's in the south of Italy, Reid's back in Vegas winning a shit load of money and Garcia's on a cruise. They sure as hell don't deserve any of it."

JJ stood up immediately. "Forget the gym. Let's go to your place now."

Morgan chuckled as she grabbed her handbag from her drawer and quickly strode towards the door. She stood at the door, looking impatient. "Well, are you coming or what?"

He shook his head as he followed her out of the office. A woman's reaction to offers of a sugar fix never ceased to amaze him. Too bad his own personal Google app was in Vegas celebrating Christmas with his mom. Morgan would have liked to ask if the addiction to sugar and all things chocolate was some type of female biological imperative.

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><p>"Christmas pickle?" Morgan pulled out a cucumber square from a pickle jar.<p>

JJ wrinkled her nose. "There's a pickle that's specific to Christmas?"

"Cucumber and maraschino cherry pickle. Christmas colours, see? It's my gramma's recipe. Try it, it's really good."

Looking dubious, she took it out of his hand and put it in her mouth. She chewed for a moment, then raised her eyebrows. "It _is_ good." She sounded surprised.

"Of course it is. As if I'd have something in this house that wasn't of premium quality. Take me, for instance." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her, grinning when she ignored his antics. JJ treated him in a different manner than the other two females in his team. Garcia, of course, he often exchanged suggestive comments with. Even Emily would tease him about various things. But JJ was almost always serious in his company. He wondered why. He knew that it wasn't because she was intimidated by him. There was never any awkwardness between them.

"I don't know how you manage to sleep with so many women. Surely there's no space for the three of you in your bed." JJ reached past him and took a cherry from the jar.

"Three of us?" Morgan emptied half a packet of pasta into salted boiling water then covered the pot.

"Your date, you and your ego," she answered serenely, leaning back against the kitchen counter and sipping her second glass of white wine as she watched him rinse the shrimp under the tap.

Morgan stifled a smile. He had known for a long time that JJ's butter-wouldn't-melt-in-her-mouth facade hid a multitude of things. His curiosity was definitely aroused. "Hey, easy with the comments, sister, or I might have to keep the fruitcake away from you."

"You and what army?" She grinned at him and he couldn't help smiling. It was good to see her happy. It had been a long time since she had looked anything other than sad and defeated.

"Good point. If nothing else, I've learnt two things about women from my sisters: always agree with what they're saying during _that_ time of the month and never stand between a female and cake."

"Or you and an unsub's front door." JJ giggled.

Morgan raised an eyebrow at his normally sober faced colleague. "JJ, you're not drunk are you?"

"I'm not that much of a lightweight, thank you very much!" She tried to look offended, but failed miserably, producing another giggle.

"Oh, really? What's got into you then?"

"Nothing. And I mean absolutely nothing. Well, unless you count my trusty vibrator, Albert." Her voice had become mournful.

Morgan froze. Did she just say what he thought she said? Apparently she did, because she too froze a split second later.

JJ clapped a hand to her mouth, eyes rounded with such horror that Morgan had to bite the inside of his cheek hard to stop from bursting out in laughter. "_Oh my God!_ _Please _tell me I didn't just say the word vibrator in your presence."

"You did. Not only that, you also told me its name. So... why Albert?" Derek watched with amusement as a tide of red swept up her face.

"I may be tipsy, but I'm not telling you that," she retorted, pursing her lips together as if by doing so she would be able to avoid telling him.

He pretended not to care, turning back to the stove and draining the fettuccine, before starting to sauté the shrimp with garlic. He was quiet for a couple of minutes, biding his time. "You know, sometimes I envy you women."

"Why's that?"

"You've got such sophisticated sex toys nowadays that you don't even need a man if you didn't want one. Men on the other hand don't have substitutes. We're still doing what cavemen used to do when we don't have a woman." He glanced at JJ.

There was absolutely no sign of compassion on her face when she replied. "Yeah, I'd feel sorry for you except that you have a date at least once a week."

"A man has needs, you know," he teased. He mixed the pasta with the shrimp and added some half and half and a sprinkling of shallots.

"Hotch and Dave are men. I don't see them acting like hound dogs."

"Hotch has Emily to satisfy his every need and then some. Lucky bastard. And you obviously haven't gone out bar hopping with Rossi. Now that man is a true legend." He ladled the fettuccine onto large plates. "So was your vibrator named after Albert Pujols, the baseball player? I know some women find him good looking."

JJ rolled her eyes before following him to the dining table. "No, it wasn't. Besides, I don't even know who Albert Pujols is."

All through dinner, Morgan pitched hypothesis after hypothesis about why she had named her vibrator Albert. Reid would have been impressed. He couldn't help himself when he saw the reluctant laughter she was trying to hide at his ridiculous suggestions. After Pujols, there was Prince Albert of Monaco. JJ didn't even bother dignifying that with a reply. Then there was Albert, the first monkey astronaut and after that Al Gore, followed by Albert Brooks, the actor who was the voice of Marlin, the clown fish dad in Finding Nemo. Morgan just happened to know this because he was a sucker for the father and son relationship that movie.

They had almost finished their meal when he pretended to be suddenly struck by inspiration. "I know! You named your vibrator Albert after Albert Einstein because it's a genius at bringing on orgasms, right?" He flashed his teeth at JJ.

"Still not telling you." She pressed her lips together, but they were twitching too hard. Not to mention that the faint blush on her cheeks was a dead give-away.

Morgan hooted in laughter. "So how much are you going to pay me to keep this delicious titbit about you from the team?"

She gave him a condescending look. "As if I'd pay you. Puh-leeze. Besides, PG and Em already know, which by extension means Hotch already knows. Dave won't give a damn. That leaves Reid, and I don't really care if he knows."

He felt a wave of admiration for her. "And here I was thinking I'd to be able to blackmail you for something."

"Nice try."

"Oh where did our incredibly nice, innocent JJ go?" Morgan sighed dramatically. "Finished?"

When she nodded, he stood up, waving her away when she picked up her plate. "You go to the living room and enjoy the Christmas tree and the baubles. See if you can turn my ipod on. It's on the speaker dock. I've loaded some Bing Crosby Christmas songs.

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><p>Fifteen minutes later Morgan walked into the living room, fruit cake in one hand and a glass of dessert wine in the other. JJ was standing next to the tree, looking dreamily at the twinkling lights, a half smile on her face. In the background Bing was dulcetly serenading the room with <em>Silent Night<em>. Much to his bemusement, as he stood there observing her, a frown suddenly appeared on her face. She carefully put her hand through the branches in front of her and pulled something out. Still frowning, she lifted her hand up closer to her face to inspect the object.

"Congratulations." Morgan put the plate of sliced up fruitcake down on the coffee table.

She looked up at him. "What for?"

"You found the Christmas pickle. Which means you'll have good luck for the following year."

"Another Christmas pickle?" JJ gave him a you-are-such-a-weirdo look.

"It's a tradition my family has. We've done it for as long as I can remember. A glass pickle gets hidden in the tree and the person who finds it receives good luck for the year ahead."

JJ looked at the odd ornament in her hand. "And here I was wondering why in the world you'd hang a small, green, ugly glass dildo on your Christmas tree."

Morgan almost doubled over in laughter. "Okay, you got me. That's exactly where I've hidden my stash of sex toys.

She lifted an eyebrow at him. "Your fascination with sex toys is a bit worrying. Does Hotch know this about you?" JJ walked over to the plate and picked up a piece of cake before plunking herself down on his couch, curling her legs under her.

Morgan dropped down on the couch next to her, slouching down and propping his boot clad feet on his coffee table. "Hotch doesn't need to know about my personal business. And, unlike you ladies, we have a code when it comes to matters of intimacy. Don't ask, don't tell."

JJ cracked up, fruitcake forgotten momentarily in her hand. "Code my ass! You are so dying to know what Hotch and Emily get up to in the bedroom! Don't even try denying it. I heard you asking Emily just the other day in the break room."

He gave her an unashamed grin. "A'ight, you got me again. So shoot me, but I'm just crazy curious. I mean Emily, okay, I can picture her as a tigress in bed." At JJ's frown, he quickly rephrased. "No, no, I don't _imagine_ her in bed as such, you know what I mean. But Hotch, hell, with that massive stick in his ass, I'm surprised he's even able to relax enough to do the actual deed."

JJ finished her slice of fruitcake and immediately leaned over to pick another one up. Morgan raised an eyebrow when she helped herself to a sip of his wine at the same time. "You know how Hotch is an overachiever?" Her eyes twinkled and she looked like a mischievous fairy with her blonde hair and delicate features. "Apparently that particular attribute isn't just confined to his professional life. Emily says even she was taken aback at the extent of his drive to umm … satisfy her." She giggled, her cheeks flushing, presumably at the memory of what Emily had revealed. He was suddenly struck by how beautiful she was.

Morgan smiled faintly at her, trying to hide his reaction at the sudden surge of attraction which had taken him by surprise. He had worked with JJ for years, but he had always thought of her as just a colleague and a friend, almost like another sister. He had never seen her as a woman in her own right, at first because he would never cross that line. And then Will had come along. He watched as she reached forward for another slice of fruitcake, his entire body tensing as he caught a glimpse of the sky blue lace on her bra through the gap in her white shirt. Okay, he needed to back off. Right now. This was getting dangerous.

But just as he was about to drop his feet to the floor to stand up, she straightened up and put a hand on his knee. He went immediately still, his dark eyes focussed intently on her face. What was she doing?

"I've got the last slice of fruitcake. Didn't you want any?" She looked innocently up at him, her blue eyes locked with his dark ones.

"I... uh... " For the first time in recent memory, Morgan was at a complete loss for words. Damn, he must have consumed more wine than he realised. Because the only thing he wanted was to bend down and cover her luscious pink lips with his. This was bad. Very, very, _very_ bad. He cleared his throat. "That's okay, I can get more."

"No, don't bother, you can have this." She paused, glancing down at the cake in her hand. "On second thought, let's share." She broke off a mouthful and before he could say anything, she was holding it up to his mouth. "Open up."

He was so stunned at the unexpected situation that he had found himself in that he automatically obeyed. JJ popped the piece into his mouth, then froze, staring at him, her lips parted. Morgan gazed back at her, his bottom lip tingling in the spot where her thumb had come into contact with it.

"Morgan ..." Her voice was breathless.

"JJ," he replied softly, his hand coming up of its own volition and cupping her cheek, her skin delicately soft under his hard, calloused palm. He slowly leaned down towards her, never taking his eyes from hers. "Tell me to stop, JJ."

She said nothing, just watched in silence as his head descended. Morgan paused when his lips were a mere hair's breadth from hers. "Tell me to stop," he whispered, even though it killed him to say it.

Her response was nothing more than a pleading sigh. "Don't stop. Please."

And those were the last words that were spoken for a long time.

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><p>"Merry Christmas."<p>

JJ opened her eyes slowly, her mouth curving into a smile when she saw the handsome features of her team mate. She knew that they were going to have to discuss what all this meant and how it would affect their professional relationship. But not right now. It was midnight and Christmas had arrived and she wasn't alone as she had feared she was going to be. It was all because of the incredible man next to her. "Merry Christmas."

Morgan bent down and their lips met in a slow, unhurried kiss, their mouths now moving familiarly together. JJ felt a frisson of sensation streak through her and she twined her arms around his neck. A rumble of pleasure resounded in his chest before he lifted his head, breaking off their kiss reluctantly.

"So, tell me, was I better than Albert?" He grinned at her, his white teeth flashing. God, she loved his smile.

"Hmm ..." She pretended to think and he chuckled. JJ rolled her eyes. He was so completely secure in his masculinity that the question he posed was wholly rhetorical. "I don't know if you're better, maybe about equal." She looked down between them. "I think I'll name _him_ Albert 2." She smiled as she watched him throw his head back and laugh.

"Damn, I don't know if I should be flattered or offended."

"Flattered, definitely."

Morgan sobered, his eyes becoming serious. His fingers smoothed her hair away from her face, the gesture so tender that her breath hitched in her throat. "I don't have a present for you," he murmured.

"I don't need a present."

"It's Christmas and you don't have anyone. You deserve a present."

"You're wrong. I do have someone," she said softly, turning his hand and pressing a kiss into his palm. "But if you insist, there _is_ something that I want."

"What's that?" He smiled indulgently at her, dark eyes soft.

"I really want to know how to kick down a door."

"_What?_" He spluttered with surprised laughter. "Why the hell would you want to do that?"

"I've always wanted to be a badass like you."

His chest was still shaking when he replied. "Baby, I hate to tell you this, but you couldn't be a badass if you were a hundred times the overachiever Hotch is."

She shot him a disgruntled look, pouting.

"All right, all right, I'll teach you to kick down a door." He drew her up and over him and she shivered, a delicious warmth rising within her at the feel of his taut, muscled body under her. "There are a lot of things you need to know before we even get to the actual kick."

"Oh?" Her eyes fluttered closed as he started to caress her back. His hands made smooth, strong strokes up her spine and then down again.

"Oh, yeah." His voice was a low vibration against her throat. "You need to observe what type of door it is. Has it got a hollow core, or is it solid wood, metal clad or hollow metal. That will influence how much force is required. You also have to check the hinges to determine which way the door opens." His hands moved further south.

"I had no idea there were all these considerations to be taken into account," she replied in a distracted tone. At that moment, she didn't really care, because his extremely talented fingers had arrived at a particularly sensitive location, and she was fast losing any rational thought that remained.

"There's more. You have to focus on the area just below the doorknob. Stand sideways, a few feet away from the door, then holding your body upright, deliver the kick, making sure your center mass is in front of your supporting leg to give you momentum."

JJ dug her fingers into Morgan's shoulders, her breath coming in fast pants, barely listening to him as he explained to her which part of her foot she should use in order to avoid injury and what to do to stabilise herself so that she would remain upright after delivering the kick.

And then she wasn't listening any more as starbursts exploded behind her closed eyelids, her body shuddering above his.

Sometime later, JJ opened one eye when she felt Morgan's chest vibrate with laughter. "What?" she muttered.

"I was trying to imagine you as a badass and this image of you dressed as a biker chick came into my head."

He grunted when she poked him hard in the ribs.

"Keep talking like that I won't give you your present."

"What present?" He sounded immediately alert and she shifted, settling herself more comfortably on his chest.

"I have to go home to get him first. But I thought that maybe you might like me to put on a little show with Albert for your viewing pleasure. What do you think?" She smiled to herself when she felt his chest go still as he stopped breathing.

There was a brief silence.

"I think that I'm going to have to buy a car for my momma to thank her for the fruitcake."

As their laughter filled the room, large flakes of snow started falling down outside, heralding the start of not just one of the most special days of the year, but the beginning of a precious gift that neither one of them had ever expected.

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><p><strong>Please leave me a review, I'd love to know what you think of this fic! <strong>

**Oh, and please make sure you vote in the CM Profiler's Choice Awards ballot over at the Chit Chat On Author's Corner Forum.** **You will make all the nominees (me included) really happy!**


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